October 2000 MSU Basketball Skuttle-Butt

10/30/00 (9:35 a.m.) - If you live in or around the Starkville area, come on over to MSU tonight and meet the men's and women's basketball team and coaches.

Oktibbeha County Alumni Chapter's Meet the Basketball Players meeting. Monday, October 30, 2000, 6:00 PM at the Leo Seal M-Club on the Mississippi State campus. This is the building on the south end of Scott Field.

For more information, contact Tony Thompson at 323-0203 or gnas@aol.com, Mike Nosser at 325-2051 (day) 324-6176 (night), or John Rush at 325-1108 or jrush@engr.msstate.edu. Coaches Stansbury and Fanning will introduce each player individually and discuss team's potential for this year.

10/30/00
Men's Basketball - Reigning all-SEC frontliner Robert Jackson scored 30 points and senior guard Antonio Jackson added 21 points to lead the Mississippi State Bulldogs during Saturday's intrasquad basketball scrimmage at MSU's Humphrey Coliseum.

Selected to the Coaches' All-SEC Third Team a year ago as a sophomore, Robert Jackson connected on 11-of-19 field goals and 8-of-10 from the free-throw line en route to his scrimmage-high point total. The Milwaukee, Wis., native also collected nine rebounds.

"We had an opportunity to learn from several different game-like situations, especially working on our late-game situations," noted third-year MSU head basketball coach Rick Stansbury, who sent his Bulldog squad through a scrimmage-opening, 20-minute half followed by a pair of 10-minute periods.

A 30-game starter last season, Antonio Jackson tallied 18 of his 21 points in the opening 20-minute scrimmage, including three 3-pointers in the final minute of play to help lead the White-clad Bulldogs to a come-from-behind overtime victory. For the day, the Huntsville, Ala., native hit 8-of-16 shots overall from the field with four 3-pointers in eight attempts.

Senior forward Tang Hamilton recorded the day's only "double-double" with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Junior guard Guy Gardner, from Northeast Mississippi Community College, scored 16 of his 17 total points in the opening 20 minutes of action, including 3-of-6 three-point shooting. Junior forward Tyrus Boswell contributed 16 points and nine boards, while incoming high school all-American Mario Austin totalled 13 points, five rebounds and five assists.

"We've now completed a very good two weeks of two-a-day practices, and we're about where we expected to be at this point in the preseason," Stansbury added. "We need to keep improving and get ready for an excellent CBA pro team (Grand Rapids Hoops) next Saturday."

The Bulldogs will play host to the Grand Rapids Hoops of the Continental Basketball Association next Saturday (Nov. 4). Tip-off time for MSU's first of two exhibition home games is set for 7 p.m. at Humphrey Coliseum. State will also welcome BC Istra of Croatia in preseason exhibition action on Friday, Nov. 10. Game time for the Bulldogs' exhibition finale is also set for 7 p.m.

After competing in the season-opening Preseason NIT, beginning with a Nov. 13 road contest against the California Golden Bears in Berkeley, the Bulldogs are scheduled to open their regular-season home slate versus McNeese State on Saturday, Nov. 18.

Mississippi State opens the 2000-01 campaign with 10 returning lettermen, including four starters, from last year's 14-16 team.

Leading the white squad was senior guard Meadow Overstreet with 14 points. Back after a sensational freshman season, sophomore LaToya Thomas was right behind Overstreet with 12 points. Senior guard Cynthia Hall and junior forward Jennifer Fambrough each added nine points. Hall dished out the most assists for either team with five.

The only double-digit scorer for the maroon squad was freshman Jessica Carter. The guard from Farmington, Ark., was the only Lady Bulldog to make more than one three-pointer, hitting two-of-three from long range. Freshmen Lyndi Sippel and Dana Benemon each chipped in six points for the maroon team.

The scrimmage gave fans an opportunity at a first look at the Lady Bulldogs. Returning after its most successful season in history, this MSU squad opens its competitive season on Thursday with an exhibition game against Basketball Travelers at 7 p.m. State hosts Athletes in Action on Nov. 13 in its final exhibition match-up. All exhibition games are free to the public.

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

10/27/00 - The 2000 Southeastern Conference Coach of the Year, Sharon Fanning, and her latest edition of Lady Bulldog basketball will give fans a first look at the 2000-2001 women's basketball program on Saturday. Slated for an approximate 11 a.m. start, the intrasquad scrimmage will begin immediately following the men's.

"This is a warm up for our first exhibition game [Nov. 2]," said Fanning. "It will give us an opportunity to look at various combinations and evaluate our progress at this point after two weeks of practice."

Back from last year's record-breaking squad are three of the five starters. Leading the pack is sophomore LaToya Thomas who became only the eighth freshman in the 25-year history of Kodak all-American honors to earn the award, placing her among the nation's top-10 players. Thomas was the only freshman in SEC history to lead the league in scoring, having averaged 21.0 point per game a year ago. The 6-2 forward from Greenville, Miss., earned numerous other honors last season, including first team all- SEC, SEC Freshman of the Year and the SEC Tournament MVP.

Also returning from last year's starting line-up is junior Jennifer Fambrough, who has earned all-SEC honors the last two seasons. Having started every game (60) since donning the Maroon and White, Fambrough has been a consistent part of the recent Lady Bulldog success. She holds seven individual school records, including most points in a game with 42. The 6-0 forward from Dickson, Tenn., has a career average of 15.2 points per game which is attributed to her career 51-percent shooting from the field. Cynthia Hall is returning for her senior year with the Lady Bulldogs. Having started in 29 games last season, she averaged 31.9 minutes per game. She broke the school record for three-pointers in a season with 82. The 5-6 guard from Vicksburg, Tenn., ranked 25th in the nation last season for three-pointers in a game (2.6). Hall is third on State's career three-point list with 114.

Beating Hall's career-best of seven three-pointers in a game for the school record is Meadow Overstreet, who made eight last December. A 5-7 senior from Atlanta, Ga., she has played in 81 games since becoming a Lady Bulldog and was the only non-starter to play in all 32 games last season. A three-point specialist, she was second on the team in three-pointers with 35 and stands sixth on MSU's career chart with 79.

Rounding out the Lady Bulldog returners this season are sophomores Courtney Graham, a 5-11 forward from Frankfort, Ky., Keisha Stringfellow, a 5-9 guard from Clinton, Miss., and Randi Williams, a 5-4 guard from Choctaw, Miss. Graham saw action in 30 games last season while Stringfellow played in 22 and Williams in 13.

The incoming freshmen consist of Seneca Anderson, a 6-1 guard from Benton, Miss., Dana Benemon, a 6-2 guard from Statesboro, Ga., Jessica Carter, a 5-7 guard from Farmington, Ark., and Lyndi Sippel, a 6-2 forward from Rising Fawn, Ga.

With free admission to all, fans are encouraged to stop by and pick up schedule cards and posters as well as to get a first look at the latest edition of Lady Bulldog basketball.

"Itıs been very promising to hear from fans around our region already commenting on the upcoming season," said Fanning. "There is a lot of excitement and many fans have already requested season tickets. We're hoping that we can become a very good basketball team and give fans the excitement they are looking forward to this season."

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

10/25/00 - As part of Mississippi State University's Homecoming activities, coach Rick Stansbury's Bulldogs will conduct an intrasquad basketball scrimmage this Saturday morning at Humphrey Coliseum. Slated to begin around 8:30 a.m., the scrimmage will be open to the public with no charge for admission.

Mississippi State basketball fans will have two more opportunities to preview the 2000-01 Bulldogs free of charge, as MSU will play host to the Grand Rapids Hoops of the Continental Basketball Association on Saturday, Nov. 4, and BC Istra of Croatia on Friday, Nov. 10. Both exhibition contests are scheduled for 7 p.m. tip-offs at Humphrey Coliseum.

After competing in the season-opening Preseason NIT, beginning with a Nov. 13 road contest against the California Golden Bears in Berkeley, the Bulldogs are scheduled to open their regular-season home slate versus McNeese State on Saturday, Nov. 18.

Mississippi State opens the 2000-01 campaign with 10 returning lettermen, including four starters, from last year's 14-16 team.

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

10/06/00 - A school-first invitation to the prestigious Preseason NIT and participation in the University of Arizona-hosted Bank One Fiesta Bowl Classic highlight Mississippi State University's 2000-01 men's basketball schedule, as announced this week by MSU Director of Athletics Larry Templeton.

Returning 10 lettermen from last year's 14-16 squad, third-year head coach Rick Stansbury's Bulldogs will open the 2000-01 regular-season campaign by travelling to Berkeley, Calif., to meet the University of California on Monday, Nov. 13 in the opening round of the Preseason NIT. The season-opening contest will be televised live by ESPN2, as will the winner's second-round game versus either Texas or Navy two days later (Nov. 15) at a campus site to be determined. The semifinals (Nov. 22) and finals (Nov. 24) of the Preseason NIT will be televised live by ESPN from Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Depending on their advancement in the Preseason NIT, the Bulldogs could take part in a seven-game, in-state homestand beginning with a Nov. 18 date against McNeese State at Humphrey Coliseum and closing with a Dec. 18 meeting with Southeastern Louisiana at the new 8,575-seat DeSoto County Civic Center in Southaven, Miss. Also set to visit "The Hump" during MSU's possible month-long homestand are Mississippi Valley State (Nov. 21), Alabama A&M (Nov. 30), Richmond (Dec. 2), Louisiana Tech (Dec. 5) and Montana State (Dec. 9).

State will close out the 2000 calendar year by competing in the Bank One Fiesta Bowl Classic, Dec. 28 and 30, in Tucson, Ariz. The Bulldogs will be paired with reigning NCAA Tournament participant Louisiana-Lafayette in first-round action at the McKale Center. Along with the host Arizona Wildcats, a probable consensus preseason pick to reach this year's Final Four, the tournament also features Butler University, which dropped a first-round overtime decision to Florida in last year's NCAA Tournament.

Rounding out Mississippi State's non-conference, regular-season slate will be a Jan. 17 home contest against Tulane University, as the Green Wave makes its first Starkville appearance for basketball since the 1965-66 season.

With at least 16 regular-season games pitted against teams that participated in either the NCAA Tournament or NIT a season ago, the Bulldogs will open Southeastern Conference play with home contests versus defending SEC Tournament champion Arkansas (Jan. 6) and reigning national runner-up Florida (Jan. 10). SEC West rivals LSU (Jan. 24) and Mississippi (Jan. 27) also visit Humphrey Coliseum during the month of January.

MSU will then hit the road for five of its eight February league contests, including treks to Arkansas (Feb. 3), Kentucky (Feb. 10), Mississippi (Feb. 14) and LSU (Feb. 24). After closing out the regular season with a March 3 home game versus South Carolina, State will participate in the 2001 SEC Tournament, to be held March 8-11 at the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashville, Tenn.

2000-01 MISSISSIPPI STATE MEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE

Nov. 4 - GRAND RAPIDS HOOPS-CBA (Exh.); Nov. 10 - BC NIGERHAZA-HUNGARY (Exh.); Nov. 13 - at California (Preseason NIT First Round); Nov. 15 - Texas/Navy (Possible Preseason NIT Second Round at campus site TBA); Nov. 18 - McNEESE STATE; Nov. 21 - MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE; Nov. 30 - ALABAMA A&M.

Dec. 2 - RICHMOND; Dec. 5 - LOUISIANA TECH; Dec. 9 - MONTANA STATE; Dec. 18 - Southeastern Louisiana (@ Southaven, MS); Dec. 28 - Louisiana-Lafayette (@ Tucson, AZ in Bank One Fiesta Bowl Classic); Dec. 30 - Arizona or Butler (@ Tucson, AZ in Bank One Fiesta Bowl Classic).

Jan. 6 - ARKANSAS; Jan. 10 - FLORIDA; Jan. 13 - at Alabama; Jan. 17 - TULANE; Jan. 20 - at Tennessee; Jan. 24 - LSU; Jan. 27 - MISSISSIPPI; Jan. 31 - at Auburn.

Feb. 3 - at Arkansas; Feb. 7 - ALABAMA; Feb. 10 - at Kentucky; Feb. 14 - at Mississippi; Feb. 17 - AUBURN; Feb. 21 - VANDERBILT; Feb. 24 - at LSU; Feb. 28 - at Georgia.

Mar. 3 - SOUTH CAROLINA; Mar. 8-11 - SEC Basketball Tournament (@ Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashville, TN).

Note: The semifinals and finals of the 2000 Preseason NIT will be played Nov. 22 and 24, respectively, at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

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